A new executive board for College Democrats of Indiana has been elected! The board, who will serve for the 2018-2019 term, will lead CDIN through the blue wave of 2018. They are excited to get to work!

The CDIN State convention and 2017-18 executive board election will take place at Butler University on 4/29. It will be held in Pharmacy Building 150, and run from 10AM - 3PM. Speaker information and a finalized event schedule will be sent out to all registrants one week prior to the convention.

While the election that concluded one week ago did not turn out how we hoped, we are still encouraged by the work our members put into fighting for progressive change in our state and country. Our Get Out the Vote operation was in full force, as College Democrats all throughout Indiana mobilized on their campuses and in their communities to reach thousands of voters over the final days of this grueling campaign.

President Kegan Ferguson stated: “All over Indiana and across our country, we saw a level of student engagement like never before. I could not be prouder of the work that College Democrats put in this election cycle, even while they took midterms, wrote papers, and looked for jobs. I want to thank all of them for their hard work as we continue to fight for what we know is right.”

We congratulate President-elect Donald Trump on his hard-fought, albeit shocking, victory last Tuesday. His populist message was one that resonated with many Americans. He now has the chance to rise above the hatred and bigotry that fueled his campaign to bring our country together.

America is great because America is good. We sincerely hope that President-elect Trump will renounce the racism, sexism, and xenophobia of his campaign and work to build unity in our country. We believe that we truly are stronger together; the onus is now on the President-elect to stop the hatred and violence that his campaign encouraged, and to work towards a better future for all Americans.

While we may be skeptical of the next administration backing down from the hateful policies and rhetoric pushed on the campaign trail, we fully believe that we must approach it with an open mind and give President-elect Trump a fair chance to lead.

That does not mean we will stop being vigilant, that does not mean we will stop organizing, and that certainly does not mean we will stop fighting tooth and nail for the progressive policies we believe in. The College Democrats of Indiana will continue to push for a more inclusive, fair, and just political landscape in communities across our state.

If you share this vision and our goals, please consider signing up to get involved here​, or donating to our organization here.

​College Democrats around Indiana are strongly denouncing the selection of Mike Pence to be Donald Trump’s running mate. As Hoosiers who have gotten to know him as a Congressman and Governor, we understand that he does not have the ability, competence, or vision to be Vice President. Though we are glad to see him leave statewide office, the thought of him being one heartbeat away from the Presidency is one we cannot ignore.

Pence has done so much damage in the national spotlight recently that it can be easy to forget the exhaustive list of problems that have plagued his time in government. So, in case you missed some of them, we made a quick list of the highlights:

Trump’s selection of Pence perfectly demonstrates the kind of careless thinking, poor decision making, and support for extreme ideology that we must keep out of the White House. Maybe it was because he endorsed Ted Cruz, or maybe it was because he caught a small glimpse of what Hoosiers have seen during Pence’s time in office, but even Trump himself reportedly tried to reverse course and ditch Pence at the last minute - typifying poor leadership.

We cannot let these candidates use racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia to galvanize the far right. If you are a college student reading this right now, please click on the "get involved" tab at the top of the page. The stakes in this election are too high to sit on the sidelines. We need your help to elect progressive candidates who will focus on solving the problems facing everyday Americans instead of espousing extreme, reckless, and divisive policies that will only move our country backwards.

College Democrats from Indiana University, Purdue University, the University of Notre Dame, Ball State University, Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis, the University of Southern Indiana, Indiana State University, Manchester University, Valparaiso University, and Anderson University have united in support of Secretary Hillary Clinton for President. Young people across our state recognize the importance of this election, and we know that leaving the fate of our country in Donald Trump's hands will do nothing but harm the next generation of Hoosiers.

Secretary Clinton has been the most qualified candidate in this race by far, and she is the only one that has the experience needed to do the difficult work it takes to be President. In her time as an activist, lawyer, First Lady, Senator, and Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton has shown that she will fight to make progressive change a reality. As Senator Sanders outlined during his endorsement speech yesterday: “this campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing the very serious crises we face. And there is no doubt, in my mind that, as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that.”

If Donald Trump’s consideration of Mike Pence as his running mate makes one thing clear, it’s that it is time for College Democrats to unite behind Secretary Clinton and work to turn Indiana blue come this fall. Mike Pence has proven he is willing to pursue the same extreme, reckless, and divisive agenda as Donald Trump. As Governor, Pence has legalized discrimination against the LGBTQ community, attacked women’s reproductive rights, tried to block aid for Syrian refugees, and done nothing but push a divisive social agenda which distracts from the real work it takes to improve Indiana’s future. Mike Pence is Indiana's Donald Trump, and we've seen just how much of a disaster their brand of politics has been for our state.

Hoosiers have watched Mike Pence disgrace Indiana non-stop over the last four years, and we don't want the same for our country. Instead of moving forward, our state has watched its national reputation plummet amidst constant scandal. Whether it be Carrier, RFRA, a state sponsored media agency, million dollar state house doors, crumbling roads and bridges, or any of the other Pence-driven disasters - our Governor has shown us a snapshot of just how damaging Trump-style ‘leadership’ can be. We won’t let Mike Pence run to the national spotlight to hide from his plunging approval ratings, and we certainly won’t let Donald Trump win in Indiana this November.

The College Democrats of Indiana are pleased to announce that Christina Hale will serve as our new Honorary Chairwoman! State Rep. Hale has been a tireless advocate for communities in need across the globe, and has worked endlessly to improve the lives of Hoosiers across our state. We are excited to have an opportunity to work with someone who has given so much to Indiana, and we know that Rep. Hale will have many lessons and ideas to share with the CDIN.

Planned Parenthood has come under fire for what anti-choice activists call "selling baby parts". This is just as ridiculous as it sounds, as the deceitful and targeted smear tactics have been easily disproved.

Two videos have been released by the Center for Medical Progress claiming to show Planned Parenthood staff discussing the illegal sale of fetal body parts. However, this is entirely misleading as both videos are highly edited, cutting hours of secretly r﻿ecorded footage. The videos actually show staff discussing tissue donation, a well-known practice for medical research that save lives. Planned Parenthood has stated that it follows all legal and ethical guidelines and patient consent is always given for donation. It is standard practice for costs associated with transporting tissue to be reimbursed, but Planned Parenthood makes no profit. So, what is the Center for Medical Progress? It claims to be a non-profit for monitoring medical ethics, but it has not been doing this for long. As of today, it has 46 tweets, 45 of which are about Planned Parenthood. The facebook page was created in May, with no posts until July 14th, and again, only talking about Planned Parenthood. The Center for Medical Progress is led by David Daleiden, a former Live Action employee. Live Action is a well-known and self-described “pro-life advocacy” group with the goal of ending all abortions. It is evident that the Center for Medical Progress was created solely to smear Planned Parenthood. This occurred through several years of calculated schemes. David Daleiden created a fake company called Biomax Procurement Services to trick Planned Parenthood employees. This led to the meetings in which the hours of footage was obtained, and a few minutes were released to give the appearance of illegal operations. Therefore, it all seems very clear. Planned Parenthood does not sell fetal body parts. Nor does it engage in illegal or unethical practices. With such a dishonest and easily unraveled campaign, how could anyone fall for this ploy? Unfortunately, presidential hopefuls such as Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, and Rand Paul have called for a Congressional investigation of Planned Parenthood, despite the complete lack of evidence. Even more disappointing are happenings here in Indiana. Governor Mike Pence ordered an investigation of Planned Parenthood, supported by the House Republican Caucus, stating that “many legitimate accusations have been leveled”. Are Indiana Republicans really foolish enough to fall for this? That is doubtful. But they are indeed misguided enough to seize the opportunity to promote their agendas. The Center for Medical Progress, Live Action, and these Indiana lawmakers do not simply wish to investigate Planned Parenthood. The true goal has always been to end all access to safe and legal abortions. It is shameful that those elected to make laws for us will use knowingly fraudulent evidence to halt health services because of their anti-choice agendas. This is even more disgraceful as Indiana faces an HIV outbreak that Planned Parenthood is helping to combat. To Congress, Indiana lawmakers, and anti-choice activists: Stop lying to the American people to shut down a facility that provides health services to millions. Stop trying to falsely defame an organization that prevents far more abortions then it performs. Finally, stop using manipulative tactics to further legislate the bodies of women.